To Be Alive
by Hikari no Chibi
Summary: The war ended weeks ago, so why do they all feel so strange? Fluff, but a good read. One shot, NON slash. SS, SB, BW, RL, AD.


****

Travis Tritt  
It's a Great Day To Be Alive  
Written by - Darrell Scott

__

I got rice cooking in the microwave

Got a three day beard I don't plan to shave

And it's a goofy thing but I just gotta say

"Hey, I'm doing alright"

Sirius Black sat down slowly on his small kitchen stool. The apartment he had occupied since the end of the war several weeks prior seemed almost a cathedral compared to the time he had been forced to spend locked inside of Grimmauld Place and Azkaban.

Living in the glory of war he was not, however, and as he helped himself to a portion of the instant rice Hermione and Harry had turned him on to over the last summer they had spent together, he couldn't help but smile.

The War had ended, and he was a free man, and he would be seeing Harry very soon. Free. The word played joyously on his lips, barely daring to escape the chamber he had confined it to years ago.

"Free. _I'm bloody well free_."

Sirius slouched over on his kitchen stool and propped his head up on the palm of his hand, which received a scruffy greeting from his lower jaw.

How long has it been since I shaved? He thought. In all honesty, losing track of time became more and more a part of his daily life since the downfall of Lord Voldemort. It all seemed so surreal, and with reconstruction well under way the Wizarding world seemed to be returning to a state of normalness.

Well, as normal as the Wizarding world gets, he mused before stuffing a large fork full of rice into his mouth. As he ate, he noticed that his toes were tapping wildly to their own beat.

I've got to do... I don't know, but I've got to do something. The playful Sirius Black was back in action.

Merlin, he felt wound up about something.

So what's so different about today from yesterday?

The realization hit him all at once, and graceful as he was, Sirius couldn't help but fall off of the three legged stool he had been bouncing on so precariously. Jumping to his feet, Sirius ran a hand through his shoulder length hair and scratched the scraggly hair on his chin. He looked down at himself.

Not too shabby. The white shirt he wore seemed a bit yellow about the collar, but that was to be expected when one slept in their clothing. His boxers, however, could not have been more pristine with their little snitches zooming around them.

I need to floo Remus, it's just so-

"Remus Lupin!" Sirius stated clearly into his fireplace, tossing in a pinch of the glittering powder he kept in an old sock on the mantel.

"Wh- Sirius?" Asked Remus, his smile reaching his eyes. The old werewolf had obviously enjoyed the surprise call from his friend. "How are you?"

They hadn't spoken since the Final Battle. There just hadn't seemed to be anything left which was important enough to be said.

"Hey," replied Sirius. "I'm doing all right."

It felt as though the burden of war had just been lifted from his shoulders for the first time since his Hogwarts days.

__

Yeah I think I'll make me some homemade soup

Feelin' pretty good and that's the truth

It's neither drink nor drug induced

No, I'm just doin' alright

Severus Snape was not given to giddiness, nor was he one to suffer fools easily, but even he could not delude himself any longer.

The Dark Lord is dead.

Quite suddenly Severus' stomach gave a loud rumble, stirring him from his quiet reverie. Hunger? Since when do I get hungry? In protest, the Potion Master's stomach growled once more.

I should just call up a House Elf- but then he stopped. When was the last time he had cooked anything? Months? Years? Decades, even? There simply wasn't time for Double Agent Snape to brew anything but potions needed in the Final Battle...

Well, I am no invalid. He scoffed, sarcastic even to himself. Besides, there are fresh leeks in my office, Sprout just dropped them off this morning.

As he began to work in his kitchenette, a feature which came standard for all of Hogwarts' faculty quarters, he fell into a sort of old pattern. Severus Snape found himself _humming_.

A tune from his youth, some Muggle rock group or another, he told himself. Not so. It was an old favorite of his, Holiday in the Sun, and it was, decidedly, from the Sex Pistols.

Bloody hell, he even remembered all of the words, and a smile graced his-

What the fuck? Severus Snape does not smile. Ever.

Am I drunk? No. Hung over? No. Sexually active? Hell no. Using Pepper-Up potion? Not unless Poppy... No. Cheering Charm? No. Then what-

"Ah, Severus, my boy!" Exclaimed Albus from the kitchen entry way. "Had I known you were cooking again I should have very much liked to invite myself to lunch."

"I suppose you're not only here for the soup?" Asked Snape, caught a bit off guard. What had three weeks of memorial services, reconstruction, and social events done to him? Spies do not get caught off their guard unless they want to turn up dead.

The Headmaster helped himself to a cup of the steaming brew. "I just wanted to thank you, Severus. I know how hard these last few weeks must have been for you."

Severus snorted.

"Actually, I am rather impressed with how well you've held up, given all the press attention that you've been receiving lately." The older man winked.

"Albus, if this is one of your hair brained schemes to get me to tell my life story to Rita Skeeter, then-"

"Nonsense, my boy. I simply wished to see how you were coping with this new feeling you've developed." Stated Dumbledore, cleaning and replacing his soup cup.

"What new feeling?" Asked Severus, but Dumbledore had already vanished. Severus felt the corners of his mouth twisting upwards, and-

What the _hell _is wrong with me? That's twice now in under an hour!

Am I running a fever? No. Been jinxed? No. Been promoted to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts? Sadly, no. Smoke _anything_? No-

_No_, he realized quite suddenly, and checked his left forearm. Nothing.

No, he thought to himself as he poured a cup of the leek soup. There's nothing wrong with me, I'm just... I'm doing alright.

__

And it's a great day to be alive

I know the sun's still shinin' when I close my eyes

There's some hard times in the neighborhood

But why can't every day be just this good?

Albus Dumbledore's blue eyes twinkled mysteriously as he walked back towards his office from the dungeons. Three generations of war, spanning from Grindelwald to Riddle's second assault, and he could finally spend his free time relaxing to some soft chamber music.

__

It's been fifteen years since I left home

Said good luck to every seed I'd sown

Give it my best and then I left it alone

Oh...I hope their doin' alright

Bank desk jobs are not all they are cracked up to be, Bill Weasley thought as he broke through another chamber of a rather stubborn tomb. This felt good. Egypt felt good, and he felt glad to be back even if it did mean that he'd left England and the Weasley clan once more.

The Burrow was his home, of course, but _this_... This was where he _belonged_. Besides, since Voldemort's death he hadn't had much reason to stay in London. Mercifully the entire Weasley line had made it through the War in one piece.

In fact, the Order had suffered very few losses. He couldn't help but worry about his family though.

They had understood, he reasoned. When he had bid his family farewell fifteen years prior to begin his work as a curse breaker for the Goblin bank, he'd been ecstatic to have them owl once or twice a month, but now all he wanted was to start his life over. Knowing that Egypt is where he belonged felt- Well, it felt good.

It hadn't at first, though. At first he felt like he had abandoned his family for a life of riches, adventure, and glory, but today... Today he just felt good about this decision.

After all, it is my life.

They would be fine without him, and Charlie had decided to stay at home for a few more months, at least. Mum was doing well, according to his father, and so were Percy, Ron, and Ginny. Fred and George, well.. was there ever a time that pair wasn't in high spirits?

The thought of his family brought a smile to his lips as he burst through into the tomb's master chamber. Oh, I hope they're doing alright...

__

Now I look in the mirror and what do I see?

A lone wolf there starin' back at me

Long in the tooth but harmless as can be

Lord, I guess he's doin' alright

The bags which had once marred Remus Lupin's face were long gone from his visage, and the middle-aged werewolf felt more alive than he had for decades.

Sort of a delayed reaction, his ever logical mind reasoned as he climbed out of bed in an attempt not to wake Tonks, whom slumbered next to him. Modesty compelled him to pull on his boxers before walking into the bathroom for a shower.

So Voldemort is really gone, then?

The shower filled the room with steam as he began to scrub his body, knowing that the full moon would be upon him that evening. Luckily Snape no longer needed to brew the Wolfsbane Potion for his lycanthropy, as Hermione Granger had volunteered to complete the task for the remainder of the summer. She planned on staying at Hogwarts, didn't she?

Clean and ready for the exhausting day ahead of him, Remus towel dried his hair and body before glancing towards the foggy mirror.

Could it just be the steam?

He looked- Merlin, he almost looked young. The wolfish glint in his eyes (probably a result of the wonderful night of passion he and Tonks had just shared) made him feel like an alpha male.

"Just look at that old wolf..." He mused out loud. "If Sirius could see me now."

How had the wolf within coped during the war? To be quite honest, he hadn't given the 'beast within' a thought for the last three weeks, and somehow he had still maintained some sort of internal equilibrium.

"So, Wild One, I suppose we'll be finding out just how you've taken to all the changes going on out here soon enough.

Remus could have sworn he saw the barest flicker of a smirk cross his reflection's face. Then his reflection winked.

_Well_, he thought, running with a towel wrapped around him to answer the floo, which had just been accessed, _I guess he's doing alright._

__

Sometimes it's lonely

Sometimes it's only me

Severus had thought that nothing would possibly ruin his first good day in... His first good day. Ever. Little did he know what the prospect of a lonely night would bring him.

The tall and pale man let out a loud sigh and tried to busy himself with the lesson plan for next September, sure that insomnia would plague him tonight.

"P-Professor?" A tentative female voice asked softly from his office doorway.

Glancing upwards, he was surprised to see Hermione Granger standing at the entrance. "Yes, Miss Granger?" He responded, not nearly as cold in tone par the usual.

This seemed to put her nerves to rest. What could the woman possibly want with him now, when he was just beginning to sulk over being alone?

"I brought some hot chocolate." She ventured, pushing her curly brown hair out of her face.

Perhaps it was just the full moon, but she looked different to him somehow. More grown up, perhaps? He raised an eye brow.

"Actually, I came down here to talk with you." Hermione said, sitting down opposite him and pouring out two mugs of the steaming beverage.

"Whatever about?" Snape asked, not sure where he stood with the young witch.

"Have you read any good books lately, Sir?" She responded, point blank.

"Call me Severus."

__

And the shadows that fill this room

The inside of the tomb took Bill totally by surprise. It's certainly not Egyptian, he realized, looking at the realistic artwork lining the walls. There was something else missing, too. No bodies were littering the area, there was no clue as to what curses lay within the room, and a general feeling of calmness filtered through the atmosphere.

Way too average for a grave this heavily guarded.

Shadows like spiders crawled along the floor as he moved his torch around, not really able to gain a decent view of the chamber around him.

"Lumos Maximus." Commanded Bill, pulling his wand from the depths of his robes. When his eyes adjusted to the brilliant light from his wand, he looked around the area.

The entire antechamber was filled to the brim with gold. Wizard gold.

Thoughts of 'I've got to tell Dumbledore' and 'I wonder who would've left this here...' filtered through his tumultuous mind. If this is what he thought it was... If this was a stock pile of Death Eater gold, then it legally became his own.

Bill smiled broadly. The Weasley family would not have to worry about money for a very, _very _long time. Centuries, actually.

__

Sometimes I'm fallin'

Desperately callin'

Sirius looked around the Leaky Cauldron for almost an hour in vain. Harry had not shown up that afternoon as they had planned. Not that Sirius could blame him, after all, Harry Potter had more people demanding his time than there were hours in the decade.

But still, couldn't he have owled me, or something?

The euphoric feeling he'd gotten from finally realizing that he could walk outside with his head held high and not have to worry about being jinxed was slowly wearing off. He hung his head and began to walk towards the Aparation point in the Men's Toilet.

Oh, Harry, where are you?

Seeing his Godson; it was supposed to be the crowning glory on his first day "really free." In his heart he wanted to call out Harry's name just as badly as he wanted to call out for James. Where had his best friend and son gone?

It was like he just searched and searched, but never got any closer to finding them. Even after nearly falling into the Veil inside the Department of Mysteries, he had sworn that James had been just as far away from him then as ever. And if-

"SIRIUS!"

Sirius Black spun around as quickly as he could to see who had called out his name. "Harry!"

Howlin' at the moon...

Ahwoo!

Ahwoo!

Remus' body began to twist and contort in the small forest clearing behind his house. Bones snapped, muscles and tendons realigned, and the Wild One began to surge through his veins.

Mind clear as crystal, Lupin began to lope back towards his home to sleep off the transformation in the wine cellar, but something was stopping him.

_We need to run._

I know.

_We're not fighting anymore, are we?_

No.

_Good. She's nice, you know. Smells right for you._

Let's run, Wild One.

And with that, Remus let out a full bodied howl at the moon, which he realized he could not see clearly through the trees, and began to race through the wood as quickly as the Wild One would carry him.

__

Well I might go get me a new tattoo

Severus and Hermione talked all night long, sharing small anecdotes and secrets if only for the simple reason that sometimes you just need to talk.

Snape had been surprised to learn, upon telling Hermione about his punk style of the 70's, that she herself had three piercings besides those in her ears and that he "could not see them, thank you very much."

She, on the other hand, had been even more shocked when he spoke of getting a new tattoo in Diagon Alley the next day as a sort of reminder that the War was, in fact, over.

After all, he'd lived for body art as a youth, but hadn't received a new patch of ink since taking the Dark Mark. It was the only tattoo, he said, that he would ever regret. It also explained why he insisted upon wearing full robes in mid summer.

Or take my old Harley for a three day cruise

Sirius Black left his rendezvous with his Godson feeling more alive and ready for a romp on the wild side than he had for many years. Harry would be living with him in his apartment just outside the Muggle Entrance to the Leaky Cauldron while he went through Auror training at the Ministry of Magic building.

They were finally going to go back to the way things used to be.

I've got to get out, I've got to _do _something!

Then a thought struck him. Dumbledore had said that his motorcycle had been housed inside of a rather large Gringot's vault, hadn't he? A cruise on his old bike is exactly what he needed.

Actually acquiring the motorcycle didn't involve much more than showing his vault key to the Goblin at the front desk, and he began to fly towards Hogsmead without a thought for the Muggles below him.

Might even grow me a Fu Man Chu...

Bill received his the Ministry's reply owl just as the sun began to set over the Nile. It was Death Eater gold, and, pending a search for Dark Objects, it officially belonged to him since all known Death Eater's possessions had been liquidated not one month prior.

He sat down to begin composing a letter to his mother, secure in the knowledge that they would be fine without him now.

**Dear Mum,**

I'm doing well, and you wouldn't believe the bit of luck I've just had. I found unclaimed gold, Mom. There's going to be a small inquiry at the Ministry of Magic, but after that I plan on sending most of it home for you, Dad, and the kids.

That being said, I think I'm going to take your advice and grow a fu man chu like Dumbledore's...

__

Ahwoo!

Ahwoo!

Half way through the night, Remus heard a low purr in the distance.

Why does that sound familiar?

Still pondering the question, Remus woke from his thoughts when a large motorcycle landed on the spare hill top he occupied. A large black dog stepped away from it.

Sirius! Barked the lycan, very excited to see his old friend Padfoot back in action. Both dogs threw back their heads and howled at the moon.

__

And it's a great day to be alive

I know the sun's still shinin' when I close my eyes

There's some hard times in the neighborhood

But why can't every day be just this good?

Yes, the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry thought to himself before kissing Minerva good night. They were going to be fine. _All_ of them.

"Nox."

****

A/N:

The end. For now. Depends on if anyone out there likes it or not. Review, please.

HnC


End file.
